“What a quiet life the family has led,” Gregor said to himself, and felt, as he stared pointedly into the darkness, a great surge of pride that he had been able to provide his parents and his sister such a life and in such a beautiful apartment. But what if all the tranquility, all the comfort, all the contentment were now to come to a horrifying end?
Her determination may also have arisen from the romantic enthusiasm of girls her age that seeks expression at every opportunity and tempted Grete to overplay the horror of Gregor’s predicament in order that she might perform even more heroically on his behalf than previously.
He saw the mother run to the father, stumbling over her loosened petticoats as they slipped to the floor one by one, and press herself against him, uniting them in her embrace—now Gregor’s vision failed him—and with her arms flung around his neck, she begged the father to spare Gregor’s life.